matthew newtondirector, screenwriter, producer

Matthew Newton is a critically acclaimed, award-winning director,writer and actor. After graduating from the National Institute Of Dramatic Art in Sydney he worked extensively as an actor in his native Australia, playing lead roles in the theater, on television and in films. His roles on television include starring as kingpin Terry Clark in the drama series Underbelly: A Tale Of Two Cities (which is the most successful Australian crime drama of all time) and playing Ka Jothee on the Syfy Network’s Farscape. Matthew worked regularly in major roles for both the Sydney Theatre Company and the Melbourne Theatre Company, and played lead roles in over ten Australian films. Matthew’s debut feature film as writer/director, Three Blind Mice,in which he also starred, premiered at the Toronto Film Festival (Indiewire said it was “more alive, full of emotional precision and brilliant performances, than almost any movie I saw at Toronto this year”).

kate ballenscreenwriter, producer

Kate Ballen is an author and playwright. From Nowhere is inspired by her decade-long experience working at a Bronx high school, where she helped dozens of undocumented students navigate the immigration and college process. From Nowhere is loosely based on a play Kate wrote that was performed at Soho Theatre/Fringe Encore, and that she and Matthew Newton transformed into the feature film. Kate has also been published widely. She was a journalist at Fortune Magazine for many years. She co-authored the book Parenting Your Toddler, a big seller that has been translated into many languages. From Nowhere marks her screenwriting and producing debut.

julianne nicholson(jackie)

Julianne Nicholson’s power as an actress runs across a range of films, theater and hit television series. She is well known for her popular role as Detective Megan Wheeler on the show Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Recently, she starred as Jean Jensen on the Sundance Channel’s crime thriller series The Red Road. Before that, she played Dr. Lillian Paul on Showtime’s Masters of Sex, which was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Drama series, Assistant Attorney General Esther Randolph on the HBO drama Boardwalk Empire, and Jenny Shaw on Ally McBeal. Other television highlights include: The Good Wife, the Stephen King miniseries Storm of the Century and Royal Pains.

Julianne Nicholson’s film performances have also been much heralded. She can be seen opposite Johnny Depp and Benedict Cumberbatch in the 2015 Whitey Bulger drama, Black Mass. Julianne was a member of the much-praised ensemble cast of the film adaption of August: Osage County. The film, which also stars Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, and Margo Martindale, received a collection of wins and nominations for its all-star cast, including a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. Other film credits include The Love Letter,Her Name is Carla, and Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, based on the David Foster Wallace collection of short stories. Julianne recently finished filming Weightless, the new Terence Malick film starring Michael Fassbender and Benico Del Toro. Her newest project is a USA series Eyewitness, where she stars as a small town sheriff.

j. mallory mccree(moussa)

J. Mallory McCree received his BFA from Rutgers in 2008 and has been landing parts ever since. He acted in productions at Playwright’s Horizons and the Signature Theater in New York City before making his debut Broadway appearance in an all-black revival of A Streetcar Named Desire. McCree is known for roles in films like We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011), Cloned: The Recreator Chronicles (2012), and White Sugar in a Black Pot (2011). On television, J. Mallory has also made recent appearances in Law & Order: SVU, CBS’s Code Black, and the HBO miniseries Show Me A Hero. He also appears in the ABC series Quantino, where he has a recurring guest star role as Charlie Prince.

denis o'Hare(isaac)

Denis O’Hare is a Tony and Drama Desk Award-winning actor, who has been celebrated for performances on both stage and screen. New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley describes O’Hare as “an actor whose presence automatically illuminates any stage.” O’Hare has appeared in four seasons of the FX television series American Horror Story which earned him two Emmy Award nominations. O’Hare spent twelve years working as a stage actor in Chicago, earning him multiple Joseph Jefferson Awards. For his performance of Mason Marzac in Richard Greenberg’s Take Me Out, O’Hare won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor. He played Ernest Ludwig in the celebrated 1998 revival of Cabaret. Other Broadway highlights include his role as Oscar Lindquist in Sweet Charity, for which he received a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical, and his Tony Award-nominated performance as James Garfield’s assassin, Charles J. Guiteau, in Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins. O’Hare also earned praise for his appearances in three films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: Dallas Buyers Club in 2013, Milk in 2008, and Michael Clayton in 2007. He is currently working on Novitiate, a 1960s story about a nun coming to terms with her own sexuality.

octavia chavez-richmond(sophie)

Octavia Chavez-Richmond is an actress and activist who graduated from Colgate University before studying acting at Stella Adler and The Acting Studio in New York. Octavia’s flair for storytelling has led her to pursue various theatrical projects. Octavia played the lead role in Ti-Jean and His Brothers at MA’s Playhouse in Brooklyn and appeared in No One Asked Me, which was showcased at the New York Fringe Festival. Her exciting film career began with appearances in films such as the horror comedy Fright Night. Octavia can also be seen starring in the music video for the song “Mom,” by the band Highly Suspect.

chinasa ogbuagu(maryam)

Chinasu Ogbuagu is recognizable from her recurring roles as Deidre Mitchell on the FOX drama The Following and Hannah in Nurse Jackie. Her recent film credits include A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014), Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014), and the Meryl Streep comedy Ricki and the Flash (2015). Her TV credits include playing Officer Scott in Law & Order and appearances on Law & Order: SVU, Fringe, and Rescue Me. Her theatre work includes acting in the South African play Nothing But The Truth at Lincoln Center and The Seven, an urban, hiphop themed take on the classic Greek tragedy Seven Against Thebes.

racquel castro(alyssa)

By the age of four, Raquel Castro was already following her passion for performing, with regular appearances in Sesame Street and Nick Jr. At age 10, Raquel played daughter Gertie Trinké in the film Jersey Girl alongside the grownups, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. For this role, Raquel won the Young Artist Award for Best Performances in aFeature Film – Young Actress Age Ten or Younger. This same year, she became the youngest correspondent ever for Entertainment Tonight’s Kids’ Choice Awards, where she interviewed celebrities like Cameron Diaz, Queen Latifah, Jim Carrey and Adam Sandler. As a singer, Castro was a popular contestant on the first season of the hit competition show The Voice, and recorded a cover of Christina Aguilera’s "Ain’t No Other Man." Other credits include Law & Order: SVU, Broadway’s White Christmas, and America, a Lifetime TV Movie starring Rosie O’Donnell. Currently, you can catch Raquel playing Marisol, one of the show’s lead singers in the hit television series Empire.

tashiana washington(amina)

Tashiana Washington stands out for her starring role as Sophia in Adam Leon’s acclaimed indie comedy Gimme The Loot. The film received the Grand Jury Prize at South by Southwest in 2012, and Tashiana’s performance earned her a 2014 Black Reed Award nomination for Outstanding Breakthrough Actress Performance. This performance caught the eye of other key tastemakers - Washington was named one of Complex Magazine’s Breakout Actresses to Know in 2013. Recently, Tashiana has flexed her comedic and acting chops on hit TV shows like The Jim Gaffigan Show and How To Make It In America.

jim norton(louie)

Jim Norton is an acclaimed comedian, radio personality, actor, and author. He hosts the Sirius/XM Satellite radio show Opie with Gregg Hughes and regularly performs at comedy clubs across the country; his Mouthful of Shame Tours draws huge crowds of fans. Norton has released stand up specials with HBO, Epix and Netflix as well as multiple celebrated comedy albums. Jim was a regular guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno as well as appearing on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Late Show with David Letterman, and Jimmy Kimmel Live. Norton was recently seen with Louis C.K. in FX’s Louie. He is also known for numerous appearances in popular films, including Spider-Man and Zach and Miri Make a Porno. He recently wrapped up Pitching Tents, a 1980s-set coming of age comedy. Norton has written two nonfiction books, Happy Endings: The Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch in 2007 and I Hate Your Guts in 2008. His first book charted on the Amazon.com Top 10 Books list upon its release, and both books reached the New York Times Bestseller list for hardcover nonfiction.

sydni beaudoin(sara)

By the time Sydni Beaudoin had graduated from NYU’s Tisch School for the Arts in 2012, she had already been singing and dancing in Broadway‘s Mamma Mia both as an ensemble member and an understudy for the role of Lisa. Beaudoin had also appeared on the big screen in the 1997 film Spawn and the 2004 comedy 13 Going on 30. Additional recent credits: singing and dancing in Gotta Dance, a Chicago musical that is soon to be Broadway bound.